It’s we who should feel shame

I am saddened to read that Ravi Kuman Vellingiri feels shame that his family is prevented from joining him in Canada. It is we who should feel shame.

Shame that immigrants to Ontario are not covered by health insurance for their first three months in the province; shame that our immigration laws, policies and practices are so inflexible that we prevent a newborn from entering Canada when the rest of his family may be here legally; shame that Mr. Vellingiri was not immediately alerted that in order to sponsor his child he must be living in Canada, rather than notifying him more than a year later; and shame that the family must be apart for another year, and the mother and older brother must now jeopardize their own permanent resident status while a new application for the baby is processed.

Canada needs more immigrants than we allow each year if we are to have a healthy economy. Apart from it being the right thing to do, it is in our own best interests to show immigrants that they are welcome here.